Top Submission Holds of WWE

List Criteria: But in the spirit of keeping kayfabe alive, WWE released a list of the top 25 submission holds and y

When I was just a little wee lad, I use to be a mark for damn near every submission hold I would see applied in a pro wrestling ring. And seeing as I grew up with three brothers in the house, we naturally tried about as many as we could at home.

Even if they kept telling us not to.

Doing so fostered a period of growth as a fan of the sports entertainment world, namely the fact that we figured out what holds were effective and actually worth taking the time to learn to apply compared to those that were not.

For example, the sleeper hold can actually put people to sleep. The Figure Four Leglock hurts like hell, depending on how sadistic the person is who is throwing it on you. And the Sharpshooter can cause pain but it's mostly harmless.

The one I hated most? The Full Nelson. I'm not sure there's a single submission hold out there that makes one feel any less powerless. Quite frankly, it's embarrassing.

Of course, once I became a fan of mixed martial arts and started studying jiu-jitsu I quickly came to realize how far I had been led astray.

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-13

Hell's Gate

The Undertaker began using a variation of the move in January 2008 on SmackDown, which would cause opponents to spit blood from their mouths. SmackDownGeneral Manager Vickie Guerrero would later kayfabe ban the move for the protection of the other wrestlers and strip The Undertaker of the World Heavyweight Championship as punishment for its use, an unprecedented move.

The move, now called the Hell's Gate, has since become a regular part of Taker's matches.

During the World Heavyweight Championship match at WWE Breaking Point, Theodore Longoverruled CM Punk's submission to the move and forced a continuation, citing Guerrero's ban. The ban was eventually lifted in 2009.

At WrestleMania XXVII, The Undertaker applied Hell's Gate to Triple H during their match. Triple H eventually submitted, winning The Undertaker the match and extending his undefeated WrestleMania streak to 19-0.

2

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-11

Sharpshooter

The Sharpshooter, originally named Sasori-gatame, Scorpion Hold in English,[1] is a professional wrestling submission hold. The move is also known by several other names: cloverleaf leg-lace Boston crab, standing reverse figure-four leglock, and, the most commonly known alternative, Scorpion Deathlock. Despite its original Scorpion Hold name, the move is still commonly known by itsBret Hart-given nickname Sharpshooter. Despite Japaneseprofessional wrestlerRiki Chōshū being given credit by Japanese fans with the creation of the move,[2] the move was popularized by and is generally associated with Sting. The Sharpshooter hold begins with the opponent supine on the mat with the applying wrestler stepping between the opponent's legs with his/her left leg and wraps the opponent's legs at shin level around that leg. If the applier decides to cross the opponent's legs around his right leg, he has to cross the opponent's right leg over their left, or, otherwise, he has to cross his opponent's left leg over their right. Holding the opponent's legs in place, the wrestler then grabs the opponent's leg which he has crossed over the other and steps over him, flipping him over into a prone position before leaning back to compress his lower back.

3

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-15

Walls of Jericho

The WALLS OF JERICHO is a professional wrestling hold that typically starts with one wrestler lying supine on the mat, with the other wrestler standing and facing him. It is a type of spinal lock where the wrestler hooks each of the opponent’s legs in one of his arms, and then turns the opponent face-down, stepping over him in the process. The final position has the wrestler in a semi-sitting position and facing away from his opponent, with the opponent’s back and legs bent back toward his head. This often sees the attacking wrestler perform double leg takedown.

The original name for the maneuver was the backbreaker, before that term became known for its current usage. In modern wrestling, the Boston crab is not treated as a lethal submission maneuver, even though it was considered a match-ending hold in the past. In Japan, it is commonly used as a hold to defeat young and inexperienced wrestlers; the ability to overcome the hold is considered a sign of growth.

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-14

Ankle Lock

It was 1st used by former WWE superstar and OLYMPIC gold medalist Kurt Ankle. In this toe hold maneuver, innovated by Koji Kanemoto, a wrestler will grab the opponent's foot and lift their leg off the ground. With one hand the wrestler will grab either the toes or the outside of the foot, then with the other wrap the ankle to create a "hole" for the joint. A grapevine variation sees the wrestler applying the ankle lock hold and then falling to the mat and scissoring the leg of the opponent. This stops the opponent from rolling out of the move and makes it harder for him/her to crawl to the ropes but lessens the pressure that can be applied. The move can be executed from a kneeling position or a standing position.

5

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-11

Figure Four Leglock

The wrestler stands over the opponent who is lying on the mat face up and grasps a leg of the opponent. The wrestler then does a spinning toe hold and grasps the other leg, crossing them into a "4" (hence the name) as he does so and falls to the mat, applying pressure to the opponent's crossed legs with his own. This variation is the most famous version, made famous by Ric Flair and innovated by "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers, and is also the finisher of choice for several legends like "The Hammer" Greg Valentine, "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, and Jeff Jarrett among many others.

With enough strength and willpower, the wrestler on defense can flip himself (and also their opponent) over onto their belly, which is said to reverse the pressure to the one who initially had the hold locked in. If the referee is distracted, heel wrestlers may grab onto the ropes while executing the move to gain leverage and inflict more pain.

An modified variation exists more recently used by Shawn Michaels where the wrestler takes one of the opponent's legs, turns 90 degrees, then grabs the other opponent's leg and crosses it with the other, puts one foot in between and the other on the other leg, and then bridges over. A wrestler may counter the figure four by rolling over on to their stomach, which applies the pressure on the original applier's legs. This counter to the figure four is often called a modified Indian deathlock or sometimes referred to as a sharpshootervariant. While the hold applies pressure to the knee, it actually can be very painful to the shin of the victim.

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-14

Kimura Lock

It is use by BROCK LESNER in WWE. Kimura (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu), chicken wing/double wristlock (wrestling), or reverse keylock are terms used to specify a medial keylock known in judo as gyaku ude-garami (reverse arm entanglement) or simply as ude-garami. The application is similar to the american, except that it is reversed. It needs some space behind the opponent to be effective, and can be applied from the side control or guard. Contrary to the americana, the opponent's wrist is grabbed with the hand on the same side, and the opposite arm is put behind the opponent's arm, again grabbing the attacker's wrist and forming a figure-four. By controlling the opponent's body and cranking the arm away from the attacker, pressure is put on the shoulder joint, and depending on the angle, also the elbow joint (in some variations the opponent's arm is brought behind their back, resulting in a finishing position resembling that of the hammerlock outlined below). The kimura was named after the judoka Masahiko Kimura, who used it to defeat one of the founders of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Hélio Gracie.

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